The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
‘Hero’ son helped stir mum to set up charity
When Angie Ferguson completed a psychology degree at Dundee University she couldn’t have dreamed that she would go on to set up an autism charity helping hundreds of local families.
Like many young adults, she graduated with lots of learning under her belt but a distinct lack of clarity on her career path.
It was only at the age of 31, after her son, Matthew, was diagnosed with autism, that the fog began to clear and Angie’s heart moved her into a direction that would become her career.
Fourteen years on, as the founder of Perth Autism Support, she oversees a charity that supports an average of 240 young people every week, with more than 900 families across Perth and Kinross signed up.
Matthew, now 18, is her “absolute hero” who “has flourished into a great young man”.
“Doing this was never the plan, but then I didn’t know what the plan was,” says Angie.
“I found it difficult to find the thing that grabbed me,” she says, so she took a job as a recruitment consultant in Edinburgh, which was also a challenge to her instincts.
“I felt uncomfortable with the sales element but I did like seeing the buzz and excitement of people whose lives I had helped change through employment.
“It is not about what someone gives me but what I can give others. I can feed off that.”
Angie moved back to Perth when she became pregnant while with a former partner. She gave birth to Matthew in March 2003, when she was 26.
Just over a year later saw a more unwanted event – the death of her father.
“He was a massive influence all through my life,” Angie says.
“We had a very, very close bond and were very similar as people: both headstrong and determined, and a lot of my work ethic comes from him.
“It was a tricky time – I had a newborn baby and had split from Matthew’s dad.”
These personal challenges were accompanied by professional ones too.
“I was not feeling fulfilled,” she says.
Angie began working in Perth and Kinross Council’s homeless services department and “absolutely loved it”.
“I did 16 hours a week and there was no pressure,” she says. “I needed that at the time.”
A highly significant event happened in 2008 when Matthew, then aged five, was diagnosed with autism.
Angie reflects that she knew “there was something different about him” when he was at Friarton Nursery.
“He didn’t enjoy being with other children,” she says.
“We’d had conversations with his nursery and put him through the process of assessment but that was taking a long time.”
Only when Matthew began at Tulloch Primary School did his condition become clear.
“During the very first week the school said they were concerned about him,” Angie says.
“I had to pick him up one day and he was sobbing in the classroom, looking out at the children outside.
“Seeing my child really wanting to play with other children yet so visibly struggling was one of the most heartbreaking moments I have had as a parent.”
Angie says that an NHS consultant soon established that Matthew had autism and dyspraxia.
“At that point our whole life changed,” she adds.
One of the changes had to be Angie’s understanding of how her perception of her son differed from other people’s.
“From the outside he was a disengaged, angry little boy,” she says, “but at home we saw someone with an amazing sense of humour who was very articulate and loving.
“It became a real need to make sure he was being supported and he needed someone with him all the time.”
In 2011, when Matthew was eight years old, Angie set up Perth Autism Support (PAS).
This was timed to perfection because it was the year the Scottish Government launched its first Scottish Strategy for Autism.
With it came funding opportunities and Angie was awarded £11,000 to get
her group up and running at Inveralmond Business Centre.
“I wanted Matt to meet friends and us to meet parents who were going through similar things,” she says.
The idea soon grew “arms and legs” and in May 2012 she went full-time after receiving more government funding.
In almost 10 years the group has continued to expand but Angie has faced personal obstacles along the way.
In 2017, Angie was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which was fortunately halted before it could spread.
“It made me realise that the charity was bigger than me, so I created a better infrastructure with a new board of trustees.
“From 2017 we have gone from strength to strength.”
In 2018 came another cancer blow as Angie was diagnosed with melanoma after a friend noticed a sixinch scar on her face.
“It was a mole that I had had on my face my whole life that started growing,” Angie says.
“Thankfully it was spotted at an early stage and it was removed without surgery.”
Matthew, who is now 18, went on to attend Perth Grammar School, leaving with Highers in biology, environmental science, chemistry and computing.
“He is my absolute hero,” says Angie.
“He has lived an entire childhood of having to try extra-hard at everything.
“He is an absolute champion and is now at Perth College doing computer science.
“He has flourished into a great young man and has learned so much about how to support himself.”
PAS has grown to support an average of 240 young people every week and more than 900 families are registered for its services across Perth and Kinross.
Its 24 members of staff and 30 volunteers help young people and their families access services as well as social and job opportunities.
PAS offers one-to-one support and training services.
The group caters for youngsters with autism and those on a formal pathway for assessment. Its youngest client is just three years old.
“At PAS our young people have so many strengths and amazing things they can add to schoolwork and general community life,” says Angie.
Funding is stable. The group receives 65% of its income from public authorities, trusts and foundations. These include Perth and Kinross Council, the National Lottery and the Gannochy Trust.
Another 20% comes from corporate and community fundraising, with the remaining 15% from renting out rooms at its 28-30 Market Street base.
One of the group’s difficulties comes when clients reach the age of 18 and have to leave the service.
“That’s the worst thing,” Angie says.
“We have had lots of teary nights with people saying ‘that’s it’, so now we have a transition service to prepare them for the future.
“Between the ages of 14 and 18 the users spend more time with their peers and it becomes more youth services than children’s services.
“It is hard going but we have had young people leave to go to college and employment, which is amazing to see.”
Angie is looking forward to the future and a new home for PAS when the charity moves to bigger premises at New Row this month.
“I have a drive to make things right and have a sense of justice to give everyone the same life opportunities,” she says.
“Autism shouldn’t be a barrier – you might need to approach things differently but none of it is insurmountable.
“To me, success is seeing our young people flourishing, finding their place, finding their friends and people around them who get them and celebrate them.”
“At PAS our young people have so many strengths and amazing things they can add to school work and general community life